Quick Question About HW

[BC_MoM]

Should you do a test for heartworm every year?

When my Mom called about the dogs, the vet said we won't need to test Mickey because he didn't have heartworm last year... I don't know how I feel about that. A friend of mine's dog didn't have heartworm last year and has it this year. Lucky they did the testing.

[.sarah]

I would, but then again I live in Florida. I actually test twice a year.

[lute]

i do once a year. it can get kind of costly because i get ALL my rescued HW tested too.

[caseysmom]

My vet won't give me the meds without a test, they require it once a year.

[lv4dogs]

I keep my dogs on preventative all year round, therefore they only need to be tested every other year.

In my area if you are not on preventaive all year round it is reccomended to have your dog tested yearly.
And you can not get any preventative unless your dog is recently tested.

[Pembroke_Corgi]

My vet won't give me the meds without a test, they require it once a year.

Same here. Unless they have been on preventative all year, I think they are supposed to get tested once a year so the vet can dispense the hw preventative.

[lv4dogs]

I was wondering if anyone had a link to the website that has a map of the USA. It states what areas/states are more common for heartworm.
I am doing a study on it for a presentation for a local shelter and can not find the site. I know it's out there somewhere, I've seen it before.

[Crazy-Cat-Lover]

I was wondering if anyone had a link to the website that has a map of the USA. It states what areas/states are more common for heartworm.
I am doing a study on it for a presentation for a local shelter and can not find the site. I know it's out there somewhere, I've seen it before.

This is all I could find...

Heartworm Locations

[kufan]

We test every year for safety and keep them on preventative all year round!

[lv4dogs]

This is all I could find...

Heartworm Locations

Well you're doing better than I am, at least you found something. lol It's still not what I am looking for, the one I have seen before is more detailed than that. You can zoom in & out and it also states the "known" possitive cases of heartworm for each area as well.

[My Peanuts]

Around here if a dog is on year round Heart Guard then they test every 2 years. My dogs are only on Heart Guard from May-December (no mosquitoes in Chicago in the freezing cold) so we test every year.

The test is cheap. At my vet it’s $26 I believe. It’s better to be safe than sorry. Jimmy had heart worm when we got him. The treatment is terrible and makes them VERY sick.

[wolfsoul]

Around here, no one tests for heartworm. The dog is either on a preventative or it's not.

[IRescue452]

I would love to find a place where you can just buy the preventative all year round. As far as I know about laws, dog medicine doesn't need a prescription here, so why do only vets carry this stuff?!! Its a freakin' monopoly so the vets can get money, but there is no legal reason that only vets can sell it. If your friends dogs has heartworms then I think you should test.

[lv4dogs]

I would love to find a place where you can just buy the preventative all year round. As far as I know about laws, dog medicine doesn't need a prescription here, so why do only vets carry this stuff?!! Its a freakin' monopoly so the vets can get money, but there is no legal reason that only vets can sell it.

Actually if a dog is heartworm positive and takes the preventative it can be deadly. Therefore I totally agree that only vets should carry the product and also make it mandatory to test before giving the preventative.

[bckrazy]

I agree with Sue.

If a dog that has heartworm is given preventative, it does more harm than good. People would just be sporatically giving their dogs preventative with no idea whether they were HW positive or not, which is very very bad.